Working Offline in PDM

The ability to work offline in PDM is a capability of the software that is widely overlooked. Have you ever had to take one of those long work trips or wanted to work from home while not being able to connect to the PDM server?

The offline mode provides users the ability to work on vaulted files from a remote/offline location, but they are incapable of viewing live changes on the database.

This function is often overlooked because it is hiding in plain sight. The function can be found under the “Tools” option in the PDM (windows) explorer vault view.

A vault view that is online shows Green File Folders. While all file folders in this mode show as green, depending on the group/ user permissions, you can view live changes occurring in the file vault. This includes the alterations of file(s), the transition of file(s) and custom notifications.

There is also the ability to work offline, in which case the user will see Blue File Folders. Offline, is when the user does not have a connection to the PDM server. This little-known function provides the user with the ability to work on file(s) offline. The user has the ability to check out the files they would like to modify but be sure to do this before going offline. “Read-only” or reference files not checked out can also be cached using the simple “Get Version” / “Get Latest Version”. Note that the files checked out while offline will be locked to all other users during this time period.

There are limitations to working with the offline feature. This includes the inability to view live changes occurring in the vault. This translates to the inability to access the data in the SQL database, which effects the Preview tab (variables and values), Data Card tab, Version tab, BOM tab, Contains tab and Where Used tab. The files you modify and save will only reside on your computer until checked in.

The advantage of using this feature is that changes can be made to writeable cached documents from the vault (during that long trip or at home), then all changes are placed in the respective folders when the software is switched to online mode. Don’t forget, once you get back online, check your modified files into the vault.

Thank you for reading! For any further questions regarding getting your PDM files on-the-go, don’t hesitate to contact us!